History

The Daggerfall Covenant occupies the western provinces of Tamriel: High
Rock, home of the Bretons, and Hammerfell, home of the Redguards. Orsimer,
the city-state homeland of the Orcs, lies within the borders of High Rock,
and the Orcs have also pledged themselves to this alliance.

The three peoples of the Daggerfall Covenant have a long history of
conflict with one another, but recent events have forced them to put these
differences aside. The Imperials in Cyrodiil have severed a number of main
trade routes, upon which the economies of the western provinces heavily
rely, and this action has created poverty and suffering.

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/251680">

High King Emeric, a Breton merchant-lord from Wayrest, has proven to be a
shrewd diplomat. He has united the brawling provinces into one fearsome
force which will prove frighteningly effective against the human-hating
tyrants of the Aldmeri Dominion and the low-life berserkers of the
Ebonheart Pact. Emeric rose up through the ranks in High Rock, took a
Redguard bride and signed a war treaty with the Orcs, forging a strong
union based on diplomacy.

The Bretons are the obvious "brains" of this faction, skilled in magic
and other thinky-brain stuff. Both the Redguards and the Orcs come from
strong warrior cultures, and these people provide loads of "brawn."

Goals

Emeric's goal is to re-establish the trade routes that were the west's
main source of income. His goal is not one of great glory, but prosperity
and equity. Though the High King is renowned for his skills with
diplomacy, he's not all long, boring talks and signing papers - one of his
mandates is to leave a few enemy survivors after each battle so that they
can spread the word of just how bloody, brutal and effective the
Daggerfall Covenant's armies are.

Bretons

History & Lore

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/251681">During the First
Era, the ancient Aldmer elves mingled with the people of other races, and
some of that mingling produced half-elven offspring. It is debatable if
this came about from Aldmer slave owners impregnating their human female
slaves, or if it was some kind of Aldmeri experiment attempting to create
a super-race of powerful hybrids, or if it was simply a case of people
following their errant hearts. Regardless, over time these offspring
became a separate people with their own distinct culture, known as the
Bretons.

The Breton homeland is High Rock, a rugged, fertile land in the
northwesternmost corner of Tamriel. It is the only mainland province that
does not share a border with Cyrodiil - Skyrim lies to the east, and
Hammerfell to the south. The Bretons have a complex social structure among
their ruling nobility which can be confusing to outsiders, and the
nobility puts the "feud" in "feudal." High King Emeric, originally a
merchant lord who ascended to the position of High King through clever
political maneuvering and heroic diplomacy, seems to have put a temporary
kibosh on Game of Thrones-like tomfoolery to aid in the war effort.

Outside of High Rock, Bretons are chiefly known for their innate ability
with magic. The Elven blood of their ancestry gives them a strong command
over arcane forces, nearly rivaling that of the High Elves. Though they
are not quite as adept with magic as the High Elves, neither are they as
weak against magical attack - their human side gives them a hardiness
against magic.

Characteristics

Historically, Bretons have been portrayed as dark-haired and
pale-skinned. In Arena, they are described as a tall people (nearly every
race was described as "tall" in Arena), but from Morrowind onwards, they
have been the shortest humans. This makes them about average height across
all the races.

Bretons have always been the race of choice for players wanting a human
magic-user. They generally start with significant bonuses to a handful of
magical skills, and their magic resistance and Dragonskin ability
(Morrowind onwards) allows them to shrug off damage from a variety of
sources, making them hardier in combat than most elves. With their bonuses
to the Restoration school of magic, they make excellent healers, but they
also work quite well as Battlemages.

Redguards

History & Lore

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/251682">The dark-skinned
desert warriors of Hammerfell, known as the Redguards, are a proud and
honorable people. They are descended from different stock than the
Bretons, Imperials and Nords, originating in the land of Yokuda, a cluster
of large islands to the west of Tamriel which was destroyed by some
unknown catastrophe during the First Era. The Redguards still carry on
Yokudan traditions - they worship different gods than most other races in
Tamriel, and their architecture, clothing and tribal structure are
foreign.

Redguard culture is shaped by the harsh, arid conditions of the Alik'r
Desert - youths must make a trek through the wastelands, a test of their
endurance and discipline, as a rite of passage. Their original homeland of
Yokuda was even more arid and unforgiving than Hammerfell, and the
original Redguard settlers had no problem adapting to the comparatively
lush new lands and driving the existing Imperial, Nord and Breton settlers
out by force of arms. Redguards train as warriors from birth, pitting
themselves against their harsh environment and developing into fierce,
capable swordsmen. The other races call them "natural athletes," and
Redguards pride themselves in excelling at physical challenges.

They have little love of magic or magic-users, believing them wicked and
weak, which makes them rather odd allies of the Bretons. Their pride and
battle-prowess also brings them into natural contention with the Orcs, who
also come from a fiercely-proud warrior culture.

Characteristics

Redguards are only slightly taller than Bretons, and are typically more
slender. They have dark skin, ranging in tone from nearly-black to light
brown, and typically dark, wiry hair.

Redguards have always had bonuses to melee combat skills, particularly
with one-handed swords and shields, and are the race of choice for players
wanting a strong "sword-and-board" character right out of the box. They
also have strong resistance to poisons and diseases - though this was
restricted to poisons only in Skyrim. Since Morrowind, Redguards have had
the Adrenaline Rush power, which significantly boosts combat abilities for
a short time. In Morrowind and Oblivion, the Adrenaline Rush ability gave
a big boost to physical stats (Strength, Agility, Speed, Endurance,
Health) for 60 seconds. In Skyrim, this was changed to a major increase in
Stamina regeneration.

Orcs (Orsimer)

History & Lore

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/251683">Despite their
beastly, barbaric appearance and temperament, Orcs - also known as
Orsimer, or "Pariah Folk" - are actually Elves. The original Orcs were
followers of the Aedra, Trinimac, who tried to stop the ancient Chimer
people (the ancestors of the Dunmer) from following a new prophet into
Morrowind. Trinimac came into conflict with the Daedric Prince Boethiah,
and was defeated and devoured by his rival. Trinimac's remains were
transformed into the Daedric Prince Malacath, and his followers were
transformed also, becoming the green-skinned, tusked Orcs we all know and
love.

Though regarded by many as barbaric savages, the Orsimer are a proud and
more-or-less orderly people. They have harsh laws and are governed by a
strict class system, but they are firm believers in gender equality.
Female Orsimer are afforded mostly all the same rights and opportunities
as males, though there are still a few gender-specific roles. Most
strongholds employ a "wise woman," and most tribal chiefs are males (with
a number of wives).

Being an outcast people, Orcs have no vast province of their own, but
instead occupy the small, independent city-state of Orsinium, located
within the province of High Rock, as well as numerous strongholds
throughout the mountainous regions of Skyrim, High Rock and Hammerfell.
When living in their home strongholds, Orcs have descriptive surnames,
like "Ghorbash the Iron Hand." When they leave their home, they take the
name of the stronghold or province as their surname - e.g. "Ghorbash
gro-Dushnikh."

Orcs are renowned warriors, capable of performing amazing feats of savage
strength when fueled by battle-rage. They are not subtle bladesmen like
the Redguard, but rather rely on their brute strength and their superb
heavy armor. Orcs are outstanding armorsmiths, and Orcish tradition holds
that mothers teach their children the art of smithing from a young age.

Characteristics

Orcs have only been a playable race from Morrowind on. They featured in
Arena and Daggerfall only as (usually hostile) NPCs.

Orsimer look the way orcs always look: green skin, prognathous lower jaw
with jutting canine "tusks," heavily-muscled frames, coarse black hair,
serrated or pointed ears, flat noses and heavy brows. In Oblivion and
Skyrim, they have distinctly different eyes, as well. Morrowind and
Oblivion Orcs were quite green, but Skyrim Orcs had skin tones ranging
from khaki to deep olive. Skyrim Orcs also featured small horns on the
forehead, a feature not present in previous games.

They have bonuses to armorsmithing, and to heavy armor, block and some
weapons. As can be expected, their physical stats are vastly superior to
their mental stats, and they are purpose-built for melee combat. Their
racial ability is Berserk (or Berserker Rage in Skyrim), a brief burst of
super-charged combat abilities. Orcs are typically employed as heavy,
front-line melee warriors, and make excellent tanks.